Short Summary

More than 2,000 people crowded into one of Lisbon's poorest cemeteries on Saturday (12 October) to honour the memory of a young student who was shot on that day in 1972 by security police.

Description

More than 2,000 people crowded into one of Lisbon's poorest cemeteries on Saturday (12 October) to honour the memory of a young student who was shot on that day in 1972 by security police.

The student, Ribeiro Santos, was taking part in a demonstration at Lisbon University. His death was widely reported in the foreign press, but was hushed up in Portugal on Government orders.

The student, Ribeiro Santos, was taking part in a demonstration at Lisbon University. His death was widely reported in the foreign press, but was hushed up in Portugal on Government orders.

Saturday's demonstration -- which began and ended at the cemetery -was organised by the extreme left-wing Movement for the Reorganisation of the Proletariat Party (MRPP). It was noisy but peaceful. The demonstrators waved flags and chanted slogans such as: "Ribeiro Santos, people will never forget you," and "We will avenge Ribeiro Santos."
The MRPP is one of the most extreme left-wing organisations in Portugal. It regularly accuses the Portuguese Communist Party of being "reactionary rightists". The party is already preparing for Portugal's promised elections in March 1975.